Comfort In the Storm
by iloveromance
Summary: Nelson's last attempt at going under affects Rachel more than she realizes. But she finds the courage to take her relationship with David to the next level. Story begins at the last scene in the movie, so it could be considered a spoiler.


In the large room they stared at Nelson. His lifeless body lay on the table. Rachel knew it was wrong. It was so, so wrong. Why did he have to insist on going under again? What was he trying to prove?

She feared that she may have seen him alive for the very last time and that after this night, she would never see him again. But he'd been under for much too long, much longer than any of them. The chances of survival were dwindling rapidly and the thought of having to bury one of their own; especially Nelson, terrified her.

But then something happened. Nelson opened his eyes, filling Rachel with a relief so great that she almost fainted. "Welcome back, buddy!" This, from Joe.

To her horror (and relief) Nelson smiled. "Today wasn't such a good day to die."

Her fellow classmates laughed and did their best to take care of Nelson, giving him food, water and warmth along with the occasional hit of oxygen. After all, he'd been through a very traumatic experience. They all had. Each of them had taken death (and their lives) into their own hands and all of them (especially Nelson) had nearly lost the battle.

She couldn't take it any longer. She turned and headed across the room to the door, and then thrust it open. The icy wind hit her square in the face, reminding her that she'd neglected to put on her coat. But she kept right on walking.

She heard his voice behind her. "Hey Rachel, where are you going?"

Again she kept right on walking.

"Your coat!" He yelled. But still she walked on, pretending that she hadn't heard him.

As she expected, it was freezing outside, but the bone-chilling temperatures were nothing compared to the emotional chills she felt inside.

She walked briskly, her arms clutched in front of her body and did her best to keep her emotions from crashing down around her.  
But then she heard his voice.

"Rachel! Hey Rach! Come on, you'll catch your death out here!"

At the word _death_ (a word she'd come to hate), she froze and turned around. He was standing just feet from her, holding her coat. She was freezing, but suddenly she realized that she just didn't care. She turned around and began to walk even faster than before, with no idea of where she was going. She just wanted to get away from him, from everyone.

But she was exhausted, both mentally and physically and she slowed her pace, suddenly unable to run (or even walk) anymore. And to her annoyance, she felt him come up behind her.

"Hey, what's going on? Why'd you run away from me?"

When their eyes met, the dam broke and she collapsed into sobs in his arms.

She held him tight, tighter than ever before. "Oh David!"

His strong arms were around her, holding her. But her body trembled like mad, despite his reassuring words. "Hey, hey… Shhh… it's all right. Just come on… put this on, okay? It's freezing out here."

She shook her head, trying to pull away from him. "No… I can't!"

"Sure you can, just-."

"David I said NO!" She screamed, breaking free of him once more. She fully intended to turn and run again, but instead she collapsed into a puddle on the ground, sobbing even harder than before.

He was beside her in an instant, his strong arms around her, helping her to her feet. She clung to him like a rag doll and was barely aware of the way he was guiding her along.

Suddenly they stopped and sat down on a hard surface. A bench perhaps? Something warm was placed around her shoulders. Her coat? And when he drew her close, she closed her eyes and sobbed against him, crying like she'd never cried before.

He held her for what felt like hours, even as the soft, white snowflakes fell from the sky. His lips were on her forehead, her cheeks, and her trembling mouth. He was telling her that he loved her.

And she loved him. Oh, how she loved him. But she wouldn't admit it. She couldn't. Not just yet, and perhaps not ever.

Sometime later, the snowflakes stopped and miraculously so did her sobs. She lifted her head and looked at him. He was smiling at her, his soft fingertips warm against her icy cold cheek.

"Hey…"

"David, I-."

"Shhh…"

"But-."

"Don't try to talk." He whispered. "It's all right."

"I-I need to tell you something."

He sighed deeply. "All right. What is it?"

"Nelson."

"Look, Nelson's gonna be fine. He just needs some time to rest. But Rachel…"

"No, I… Last night, after you left, when they called about Nelson… something happened."

"What happened?"

"I-I woke up and you were gone."

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that. I shouldn't have left you alone like that."

"No, but I wasn't…"

"Wasn't what?"

"Alone."

His eyes widened. "Damn it, you mean someone broke in? Why didn't you tell me before?"

"No, no one broke in."

"I don't understand."

"I-I saw this bright light coming from the bathroom. So I got up and followed it."

He nodded. "Go on…"  
"And when I walked inside, I saw my dad."

David sighed and reached for her. "Rachel…"

But she stepped back. "H-he looked exactly the way I remembered him, but he was standing there in a bathrobe, wearing a white sleeveless undershirt. He was…."

She swallowed hard, not sure that she'd be able to go on. But she had to. For her sake, and for her dad's.

"Just take your time…"

Tears slid down her cheeks, remembering. "He was… pouring some drugs onto a spoon and then injected them into his arm with a syringe."

Even though she was a medical student, the image still made her cringe.

He was standing behind her now, his hands gently massaging her shoulders. His breath was warm in her ear. "Hey, you don't have to do this, all right? I know it's painful and-."

She whirled around. "I have to, okay?" She yelled, breaking free of him.

"A-all right."

"I-I called to him and he looked at me and said that he was sorry."

"Rachel…"

"I never forgave him, David. For killing himself. But when he apologized, I did the only thing I could do. I started to cry and hugged him. I told him that it was okay. I-."

He took her into his arms and held her close, moving his hands up and down her back. And she sobbed against him, not sure if she would ever be able to let go.

After several long moments, he drew back and kissed her. His lips were warm on hers, despite the frigid weather.

"Hey…"

"I miss him, David. I miss him so much."

"I know…" he whispered, brushing the falling locks of hair from her forehead. "But he loves you, Rachel. I-I mean, I've never met him, but somehow I can feel it.."

She couldn't believe it when she actually laughed. "I can feel it too."

"Come on…"

"Where are we going?"

"I'll take you home."

"But-."

"You shouldn't be alone tonight."

"David, can I tell you something?"

"Sure, you can tell me anything. Anything at all. Just-."

She cradled his face in her hands and kissed him with more passion than she'd ever kissed anyone. When she drew back she was breathless as she looked into his eyes. "I love you, David. I love you very much."

His mouth fell open in surprise, but then his lips were on hers, searching, demeaning and oh so sweet. Rachel knew that soon they'd be back at his house, in the warmth of his bed, making love for the first time (but definitely not the last) as they found pleasure in one another. She knew that their bodies would fit perfectly against each other, just as their lips and their souls fit perfectly. It was as though they were made for each other. It was a ridiculously silly thought, but one that she truly believed.

He was her soulmate.

And as she and David sat on that bench, kissing passionately, Rachel knew that her father was looking down on her, smiling and happy.  
THE END


End file.
